1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a new and improved card game and more particularly, to a new and improved baccarat-type card game having a high level of player interaction, excitement, and game efficiency.
2. Description of Background Art
Card games played with a standard deck of cards are a popular form of amusement. Card games typically do not require expensive or complicated equipment, and provide a wide variety of gaming options. When wagering is involved, card games can offer a more intense and potentially rewarding form of entertainment. Various card games exist that are designed for wagering play.
One such type of card game is baccarat. The goal in baccarat is to obtain a card hand of two or three cards with a combined value ("point count") of nine (the highest hand possible). The baccarat values of the cards in a standard deck of cards are as follows: an ace is one, cards "2" through "9" have a corresponding value of two through nine, and "10s " and face cards have a value of zero. The values of the cards in a hand are added together. If the total value results in a number having a tens digit, the tens digit is truncated, and the one's digit is left as the score. For example, for a hand containing a queen, a"3," and an "8," the score would be 0+3+8=11, or one.
At the start of a game, each player must place a wager on the future outcome. The players must wager on whether the banker's hand will win or the player's hand will win. A player will receive an even payoff if he or she correctly wagered on the winner, and will lose the wager otherwise. However, if a player wins a wager on the banker's hand, the player must pay a commission or "vigorish" to the gaming establishment (no commission is due if the player wins the wager on the player's hand). The typical baccarat commission is five percent of the player's winning wager. This commission is what makes the baccarat game profitable for the gaming establishment.
After the wagers have been placed, two cards each are dealt as the banker's hand and as a general player hand representing all players. Elaborate rules exist called "third card draw" rules, wherein the banker's hand, the player hand, or both, are required to draw a third card based on the values of the two card hands.
Typically, the baccarat third card draw rules are mandatory, and are as follows. If the initial two card player hand has a point total of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, the player hand must draw a third card. If the initial two card player hand has a point total of 6-9, the player hand stands and does not receive a third card.
If the player hand stands and does not draw a third card, then the bank hand follows the draw rule above.
If the player hand draws a third card, then the bank hand must draw or stand as follows. If the bank hand two card point total is 0-2, the bank must always draw. If the bank hand two card point total is 3, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 0-7 or 9, and the bank must stand if the player hand third card is 8. If the bank hand two card point total is 4, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 2-7, and the bank must stand if the player hand's third card is 0, 1, 8 or 9. If the bank hand two card point total is 5, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 4-7, and the bank must stand if the player hand's third card is 0-3, 8 or 9. If the bank hand two card point total is 6, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 6 or 7, and the bank must stand if the player hand's third card is 0-5, 8 or 9. If the bank hand two card point total is 7-9, then the bank always stands. As can be imagined from the above rules, baccarat may be intimidating to inexperienced players.
After the draw is finished, the winner of the round is determined by adding up the total value of the banker's hand and the player hand. The banker's hand and the player hand are summed to produce a single-digit zero through nine value as previously described. The higher of the banker's score and the player score is the winner, although a tie can occur. After the winner is determined, the wagers are paid or collected, and the commission due from any player who placed a winning wager on the banker's hand is recorded. Typically, the commission is not subtracted from the winnings at the time they are given to the winning player, but are marked down and accounted for at a later time.
The commission is charged as a way for the gaming establishment to guarantee profitability. Because the banker's hand, through the third-card draw rules has a higher probability of winning, players could even the odds of the game by consistently wagering on the banker's hand. In response, gaming establishments have traditionally charged a commission on players who wager on the banker's hand and win.
Mini-baccarat is a relatively recent version of baccarat wherein the game is limited to seven players, instead of the fourteen players in traditional baccarat. In addition, the dealer keeps control of the cards throughout the game, and the players are not permitted to deal or handle the cards.
Previous baccarat games have several drawbacks. First, rules regarding the drawing of a third card are numerous and confusing. These rules necessitate a caller, a person conversant with the rules, who determines when a third card can or cannot be drawn. This is discouraging to players, who want to be able to personally know and comprehend the rules.
Second, the commission owed by players who wagered on the banker's hand and lost has traditionally been recorded and periodically collected. At the end of each hand, any commission due the gaming establishment is marked in the commission boxes in the center of the baccarat table. This is additional overhead for the gaming establishment, and creates the possibility of errors. In addition, if a player loses all of his or her money, the commission may be impossible to later collect.
Third, the recording of the commission slows the game down, which has negative consequences when the profit margin of the game is small and profitability depends on the number of hands played during a period of time.
Fourth, no special card combination exists wherein a player may be awarded the highest possible score as a way to add excitement to game play.
Fifth, in traditional baccarat there is one general player hand on which all players make their wagers. This means that all players have a common hand, and all of their fortunes hang on that one hand. There is, therefore, not the excitement of each player having his or her own hand to play independently.
What is needed therefore is a card game that provides more player involvement and excitement, that is less complicated, and is a more efficient and quicker moving game. This can be accomplished in the present invention by, among other things, eliminating the third card draw rules and the commission charged on a winning banker's hand, and employing individual player hands of three cards and a commission collected on the occurrence of a tie between the banker's hand and a player's hand.